Paving the Way Foundation

What Paving the Way Foundation does

Paving the Way Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit founded in 2016 and headquartered in Orlando, Florida, that delivers prevention education targeting child trafficking and online exploitation. The organization serves youth, parents, educators, healthcare professionals, and community advocates, with primary operations in Central Florida and an ambassador network spanning 10+ states. Since January 2017, the foundation reports having educated more than 49,000 individuals across its programs.

The foundation's core product portfolio centers on proprietary educational programs — Cyber Savvy Training™, the PEER™ (Prevent, Engage, Equip, Respond) Advocacy Program, the PEP Parent Education Program, and Teen Tech Talk — all anchored by the award-winning documentary "Trapped in the Trade" produced with C47 Films and Luna Digital. Curriculum is localized into Spanish, Portuguese, and Creole via Verbatim Languages. A Nursing CEU course delivered through a Learning Management System extends the curriculum to healthcare professionals in partnership with Nurses United Against Human Trafficking, offering up to 8 continuing education credits. Program delivery combines in-person workshops, webinars, and self-serve resources including a Parent Online Safety Toolkit and a Keeping Kids Safe Guide, with a "Jenga with a Purpose" educational game as a tactile reinforcement tool. Survey-reported outcomes include 48% of student participants talking to a trusted adult, 53% walking away from danger, and 70% highly recommending the program.

The foundation operates a donation-based revenue model. Programs are delivered free of charge to schools and community organizations, with funding sourced from individual donations, corporate sponsors (Massey Services, VCI), philanthropic partners (Parikh Giving Alliance), and government support (Orange County Government). Ancillary revenue comes from merchandise sold via SpreadShop (approximately $5 per item) and the Jenga game at $75. In-kind support includes office space from The Orlando Law Group. A volunteer backbone — including 30+ trained Youth Mission Ambassadors and 10+ Mission Ambassadors across multiple states — provides delivery capacity that scales without proportional headcount growth, supported by collaborations with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), Valencia College School of Public Safety, UCF College of Criminology, and the FBI Innocent Images Task Force via board member Maurice (Mo) Edwards.

Name

Paving the Way Foundation

Legal name

Paving The Way Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://pavingthewayfoundation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Paving the Way Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit founded in 2016 in Orlando, Florida, delivering child trafficking and online exploitation prevention education to youth, parents, educators, and healthcare professionals through proprietary programs anchored by its award-winning "Trapped in the Trade" documentary.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Child Trafficking Prevention Education

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (624110), Educational Services (61)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Child Protection & Child Rights (BPAGABAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wraparound Student Support & Case Management Services (At-Risk K–12) (EDAJAEAJ), Dropout Prevention, Alternative Education & Re-Engagement Nonprofits (BPAGADAL)

Keywords

• Child trafficking prevention
• Prevention education programs
• Human trafficking awareness
• Online exploitation training
• Youth safety education

Headquarters

HQ city

Orlando

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations: Tax-deductible charitable contributions from individuals supporting child exploitation prevention education. Since 2016, contributions have funded educational programs for youth and families.
2. Grant Funding: Funding from community partners, sponsors, and grantors including Orange County Government, Massey Services, VCI, Parikh Giving Alliance, and others supporting their prevention education mission.
3. Merchandise Sales: Sale of merchandise including t-shirts, hoodies, water bottles, and blue light bulbs with proceeds supporting education programs. $5 donation per merchandise purchase goes to the foundation.
4. Jenga with a Purpose Game: Interactive educational game sold for $75 donation to support prevention education programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Paving the Way Foundation delivers evidence-based prevention education programs to protect children from online exploitation and human trafficking. Its core offerings include the Cyber Savvy Training™ program, the PEER™ (Prevent, Engage, Equip, Respond) Advocacy Program, and the PEP Parent Education Program, all built around the award-winning film "Trapped in the Trade." Programs are delivered free of charge to schools, families, and community organizations across Central Florida and beyond, with supplementary continuing education for healthcare professionals.

Product overview

Paving the Way Foundation is an educational nonprofit that delivers prevention education programs to protect children from exploitation and human trafficking. The organization operates a portfolio of programs centered on its Cyber Savvy Training™ platform and PEER™ Advocacy Program, supplemented by parent education resources (PEP Program, Parent Online Safety Toolkit, Keeping Kids Safe Guide), specialized training for healthcare professionals (Nursing CEU Course), and public awareness campaigns (Teen Tech Talk, Teen Dating Violence Awareness, Lights on For Children). Programs use the award-winning film 'Trapped in the Trade' as an educational anchor and are delivered through trained staff, Mission Ambassadors, and Youth Mission Ambassadors in schools and community settings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cyber Savvy Training: Evidence-based educational program teaching youth about online exploitation, grooming tactics, and prevention strategies
• PEER Advocacy Program
• Teen Tech Talk
• Parent Tech Talk
• PEP Program
• Lights on For Children
• Mission Ambassador Program
• Youth Mission Ambassador Program

Products and services

• Cyber Savvy Training™ Evidence-based educational program teaching children, teens, and community members to recognize grooming tactics, online exploitation signs, and trafficking recruitment strategies. Uses award-winning films as launching points followed by critical thinking scenarios. Covers AI and AI chatbot awareness, relevant laws, and prevention actions.
• PEER™ Advocacy Program: Prevent, Engage, Equip, Respond Six-week peer leadership program that trains youth to become advocates for others experiencing abuse, harm, bullying, or online exploitation within schools and communities. Develops peer leaders through trauma-informed facilitation and coordinated community-level strategy.
• PEP Program - Parent Education Program Parent-focused education program providing tools and engagement strategies for building healthy families and supervising children's online technology use. Trains parents to have life-saving conversations about exploitation and establish safe technology practices.
• Teen Tech Talk Educational platform addressing the reality of online grooming and predator recruitment targeting youth. Raises awareness about the speed of exploitation and specific risks faced by teens in digital environments.
• Nursing CEU Course Continuing education course for healthcare professionals on identifying human trafficking signs, patient engagement techniques, and reporting protocols. Offers up to 8 CEUs through a partnership with Nurses United Against Trafficking, delivered via their Learning Management System.
• Mission Ambassador Program Volunteer training program that equips individuals to lead conversations about sex trafficking prevention using the Trapped in the Trade film. Requires a 6-month commitment with monthly speaking engagements and social media sharing.
• Youth Mission Ambassador Program Youth volunteer and peer advocate training program for students who want to raise awareness about exploitation prevention in their communities. Includes parental permission requirements and multi-language capabilities.
• Trapped in the Trade Award-winning educational film used as a centerpiece for programs, depicting the reality of online exploitation dangers and the allure of predator relationships. Serves as a conversation starter for critical thinking about exploitation prevention.

Quantifiable outcome

• 48% of surveyed students talked to a parent or trusted adult after training
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

19 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Hosted parallel event 'Prevention is Protection: Justice in Action' during UN CSW70, bringing together 5 colleagues in Anti-Trafficking to empower grassroots organizations worldwide.
• Orange County GovernmentcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner and sponsor providing support for child exploitation prevention education programs in Orange County, Florida.
• Massey ServicescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity sponsor supporting the foundation's mission to end child trafficking through prevention education.
• VCIcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner and sponsor contributing to prevention education initiatives.
• Parikh Giving AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPhilanthropic partner supporting foundation programs and awareness campaigns.
• The Orlando Law GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerContributed office space to support foundation operations in Orlando, Florida.
• C47 FilmscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFilm production partner that created the award-winning documentary 'Trapped in the Trade' used in all prevention education programs.
• Luna DigitalcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with C47 Films to create impactful film content for prevention education.
• Verbatim LanguagesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTranslation services partner that translated educational materials into Spanish, Portuguese, and Creole.
• Valencia College School of Public SafetycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides training facilities for Mission Ambassador training programs.
• Nurses United Against Human TraffickingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to provide human trafficking CEU courses for healthcare professionals. Nurses United provides Learning Management System access to foundation's educational modules and case studies. Healthcare professionals can earn up to 8 CEUs.
• National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaurice Edwards, Board member, works as Analyst Supervisor at NCMEC. Foundation aligned with leading organization in missing and exploited children protection.
• FBI Innocent Images Task ForcecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMaurice Edwards served as Task Force Officer with FBI assigned to Innocent Images Task Force for human trafficking cases. Foundation maintains law enforcement connections.
• Freedom NetworkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as proud partner organization fighting human trafficking and modern day slavery.
• Global Learning CommunityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as partner organization in fighting human trafficking.
• GOBA FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner and sponsor supporting foundation mission.
• Elevate OrlandominorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity organization partner working with youth in Orlando area.
• Boys & Girls Clubs of Central FloridaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCommunity partner providing youth services in Central Florida.
• UCF College of Criminology and Criminal JusticeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partner providing research and educational support.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Polaris Project: Anti-human-trafficking nonprofit operating the National Human Trafficking Hotline and running prevention and survivor support programs. Comparable mission scope; broader operating footprint and larger paid staff create an incumbent reference point.
• Thorn: Nonprofit that builds technology and runs awareness initiatives to combat child sexual exploitation and trafficking. Closest peer on the anti-trafficking mission; comparable in combining prevention education with operational tools, and competes for the same donor and grant dollars.
• Darkness to Light: Nonprofit focused on child sexual abuse prevention through education and training of adults and youth. Highly comparable mission (protecting children from sexual exploitation), comparable delivery model (curriculum-based prevention education delivered through schools and community organizations), and similar nonprofit funding structure.
• Common Sense Media: Nonprofit providing digital literacy, media safety, and online risk education for children, parents, and educators. Direct peer on the digital safety and parent-education side of the foundation's curriculum, with comparable K–12 school-district channel and similar parent-toolkit product.
• Operation Underground Railroad: Nonprofit focused on fighting human trafficking and child exploitation through rescue operations and prevention education. Comparable anti-trafficking mission; stronger operational-rescue focus versus the foundation's prevention-education emphasis.
• iKeepSafe: Nonprofit delivering digital citizenship, online safety, and privacy education to K–12 students, parents, and educators. Direct peer on the online-safety curriculum and educator-training axis of the foundation's work.
• Netsmartz (NCMEC program): NCMEC's online safety education program for youth, parents, and educators, covering internet safety, exploitation prevention, and digital citizenship. Direct peer on the online-safety curriculum axis of the foundation's Cyber Savvy Training.
• Eyes Open International: Nonprofit delivering human trafficking prevention education to youth and communities. Closest peer on the trafficking-specific prevention-education curriculum and youth-targeted delivery model.

Others

• Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD): Cause-focused nonprofit built on prevention education, survivor advocacy, and community mobilization rather than the foundation's specific subject matter. Useful structural analog: similar model of community ambassadors delivering school-based prevention programming and earning sustained media attention.

Broad incumbents

• National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC): Largest US nonprofit focused on missing and exploited children, including the NetSmartz online safety education program. Already a partner of the foundation; broader scope, deeper law-enforcement integration, and larger resource base make it the dominant incumbent in the same problem space.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/pavingw
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCB08mbeRx4mqPwL3Bt3ulYg
• Facebookfacebook.com/PavingW
• Instagraminstagram.com/pavingthewayfoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/paving-the-way-foundation-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Paving the Way Foundation